Technical | Dave Courvoisier's Blog

CES for VO’s

January 12, 2012 By CourVO 3 Comments

My total time at CES this week was 4 hours one morning…maybe more like 3 hours and 25 mins. That may sound like a lot, but time goes like:

(I think you get the idea).

The microcosm of the Exhibit Floor is like a futuristic city of commerce with all the finest in hucksterism, sales, presentation, hype, sex appeal, and product that you can stomach…and thousands of people — like ants — bustling around like they know where they’re going, and they have something important to do….most of them on their smart phone trying to text or call someone, and finding it pretty hard, ’cause there aren’t enough cell phone towers in the USA to handle all that concentration of traffic in one place.

I put together a little video of a few shots I took while I was there to give you a flavor of the scene. Its only 1:10. Check it out, and then I have some unexpected meet-ups with VO people to tell you about.

You saw my story about the Blue Microphones yesterday…after visiting that booth, I wandered. I had no plan of where to go next, and at CES, that’s bad; you can get lost. From the cavernous South Hall, I meandered my way to the behemoth Main Exhibit Hall where the Microsofts, the Sonys, the LG’s, and the Panasonics hang out.

A Voice actor named Christopher Flockton had briefly written me on FaceBook that he was working the Haier booth next to Panasonic, and I should stop by if I had the time. Christopher turned out to be a wonderful conversation. He was actually working as a spokesman for Haier. These are good gigs to get as an actor…they pay well, but you’re exhausted by the end of the day. Christopher had memorized the schpeel for his presentation…which he had to deliver several times during the day. I’ve done similar work at NAB before with an ear-prompter for presentations, but I actually think memorization is easier.

I had barely said goodbye to Christopher…and walked about 50 yards, when I bumped into Steve Savanyu who (among other things) is the Director of Educational Services for Audio Technica. I’d first met Steve at VOICE 2010. He’s a technical whiz, and audio expert, who can quickly get you lost in hi-fi verbiage that maybe only George Whittam and Nikolia Tesla can understand.

In my mind, running into John P (yesterday’s blog), Christopher, and then Steve in an exhibit hall PACKED with thousands was not only beyond coincidental, but underscored for me the place audio and especially VOICE has in the consumer world of hi-tech. We matter as a profession, and as a force within the world of entertainment, advertising, elearning, publishing, and on and on and on.

And THAT quickly… 3.5 hours was gone! On my way out, I stopped by the TwiT.tv location in the main hall.

The set-up was a veritable audio/video delight…mics and cameras everywhere. And there was the man himself: Leo LaPorte just ambling about talking to people. In Las Vegas, some people call me a celebrity, but to me Leo LaPorte is a celebrity. So, yes, I was shocked when Leo called me by my first name and started a friendly conversation.

‘Turns out he watches me when he’s in town. I am so grateful for my life…it’s not all good, but parts of it are amazing.

Thanks for taking the time to read about my wanderings at CES2012.

CourVO

Filed Under: Conferences, Hardware, Technical, Technology Tagged With: CES, Christon Flockton, John P, Leo LaPorte, Steve Savanyu, VO, voice, voice acting, voice actor, voice artist, voice over, voice talent, voiceover

ISDN R.I.P…?

November 23, 2011 By CourVO 8 Comments

Read into the archives of this blog, and you’ll see a long and bloody history of my wrestling match with the ISDN demons. More often than not, I found myself pinned with my shoulders to the mat.

Once you raise the question about ISDN’s possible demise, you inevitably hear from a usually seasoned old-guard of voice-actors that “…ISDN has always been there, and it ain’t goin’ away any time soon!…” That may be, but indicators show a growing inveitability that the major TelCos are withdrawing their infrastructure support for ISDN. Bottom line: It just isn’t financially worthwhile for them.

To see a much deeper discussion of this, read George Whittam’s blog: ISDN USERS: IT’S TIME TO GET A BACKUP SYSTEM.

George is not the only one saying this, but George is the only one saying it with the substantial gravity of his knowledge and experience. To that end, you may want to put a new date on your calendar: November 29th, 6pm PST. George and VoiceOverXtra’s John Florian are teaming up for a seminar that night on ISDN & Alternatives. This will be a worthwhile session.

I’m already into Source Connect…and have been for 4 years. My handle is (big surprise) COURVO. Connect with me on the Source-Elements site if you want to. I’m happy to help anyone with a test ISDN or SC session. My ISDN #’s are 702-240-2107, -2157

(author’s note 11-25-11. Make a point to read Beau Weaver’s comments below in addendum to this blog article. His experience speaks volumes, and he fleshes out a lot of answers to these issues.)

CourVO

Filed Under: ISDN, Technical

Auditioning the Alesis iODock

August 5, 2011 By CourVO 12 Comments

How many times have I blogged about this?!! Uh, four times in all…the earliest being January, then March, then a couple times in July,

Alesis was slow bringing this to market, even after April NAB attendees here in Las Vegas raved about it in the exhibit hall. I’m not sure what the hold-up was but it’s out, and its distribution seems to be in fits and starts. In fact, through a complicated misunderstanding, I was delivered two of them in one day. One from Sweetwater, the other from BSW. I plan to keep one and give one away.* (see below for details).

The purpose of this blog is to SHOW you the equipment, then to let you HEAR a soundfile recorded on the unit.

First, though, you can see many of the specs and the Alesis promotional write-up on their iODock site. The unit was, and still is designed to fit the original iPad. To use it with the iPad2, an adaptor is available, but right now the adapteo does not ship with the iODock, and you have to order it separately (they include an informational flyer with info in the packaging). I’m attaching a .pdf of the two-page quickstart guide in English, which basically identifies all the inputs/outputs on the item, and give a brief description of the switches and knobs. Alesis_iODOCK_specs.

For you audiophiles, the Signal-t0-Noise ratio is as follows:

Main Outputs: 102 dB (A-weighted)
XLR Mic Inputs: 92 dB (A-weighted, -35 dBV Input level)
Balanced Line Input: 92 dB (A-weighted, -1 dBV source level, input gain knob at min.)

Frequency Response: 20 Hz – 20 kHz (±0.7 dB)

If you’re interested, you can watch this quick video of the iODock, with a quick personal explanation of it’s general “feel”.

CourVO gives a “hands-on” intro to the Alesis iODock from Dave Courvoisier on Vimeo.

Now, here’s a listen to a brief soundfile I recorded on the iODock through my AKG C3000B mic using a windsock, a standard XLR cable plugged into the 2nd mic input (using phantom power), recorded without filters onto the Twisted Wave app on my original iPad.

The master volume control on the iODock was at ¾’s, and so was the volume knob dedicated to that XLR input.

I saved the file as .wav, and quickly, efficiently sent it to DropBox using the built-in “send” feature on Twisted wave. (this is not a demo for TW…there ARE other ways to send files through this $10 app, though.)

I edited out some obnoxious breath sounds and one bad take, but otherwise, I applied no effects, nor did I adjust the amplitude, and I didn’t normalize. I did not touch the native sound…only edited out the breath sounds. That’s it. Oh, I did bring it down to an .mp3. Here’s the original .wav if you want, though: CourVO_Alesis_ iODock_Sample

Personally, I think this is the first do-able, usable soundfile that I would not be embarrassed to send to someone as an audition from a hotel room. Would it suffice for an entire E-Learning course of 50-mins? Probably, but it’d be much easier to edit that soundfile on a laptop I think.

___________________________

*Now…about the extra Alesis iODock that I have.

Remember NVOM (National Voice Over Month) last September? Well, it’s coming back this September with a new mission, a new interactive look, and prizes. Yup…prizes! I’ll be working on it all month, and I’ll have hints about when where and how…but I know you’ll want to participate.

That’s all I got for today.

Have a great weekend!

CourVO

Filed Under: iPad, Technical, Technology Tagged With: Alesis, Alesis iODock, iODock, iPad, sample audio, sample recording, VO, voice, voice acting, voice actor, voice artist, voice over, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover talent

TieLine

April 29, 2011 By CourVO 5 Comments

So while some of us are trying to find the perfect app for recording audio on a portable device, along comes an app that just lets you send it over IP, live.

This came out in March, so I apologize for not finding it till now (feel like my tech-nose is failing me!).

Tieline is an Aussie company, and TieLine is a serious product for people with a substantial budget (but there are also some basic, and very affordable options, here). Here’s a quote from a recent article in Broadcast Engineering: TieLine is…“a new application for the Apple iPhone that serves as an IP audio codec for live, wireless newsgathering. The new application lets iPhone users capture and transmit live, high-quality audio to Tieline codecs in the studio.”

I don’t know about you, but this is the first time I’ve seen the words AUDIO CODEC mentioned in the same sentence with iPhone. I know, I know…it says the program is for wireless newsgathering, but lets face it…half the hardware and software we use as voice actors was either designed for musicians, audio studios, or broadcast studios. So what’s the problem adapting this technology for live connections.? Ever heard of ISDN, Source-Connect of VOIP?

When you search for this app in the iTunes store, you’ll find a “lite” version, an “enterprise” version, and a paid version…the first two are free, and have limited (but capable) functionality. The third version is $30, and it goes up from there. In fact, ProAudio.com offers a fully-functional package of TieLine connections and live streaming for $995 (ouch!). There are some extended costs to use this product to its full potential, but the lite version could easily be a solution for a VO cutting network promos in the back seat of his car in a pinch (Ashton Smith?).

I’ve been busy in TV news for 30 years, and I’ve never pretended to understand all the details of the broadcast equipment and protocols, so you’ll have to visit the TieLine.com site to get answers to your technical questions. However, I can tell you that broadcasters everywhere are dabbling in all sorts of new possibilities in digital journalism, and you can expect solutions like this to grow and multiply.

Mark my words, technology headed in this direction CAN be adapted to voice-over situations, and we all need to keep our eyes open for the possibilities.

CourVO

Filed Under: iPhone, Technical, Technology Tagged With: Audio Codec, IP, ISDN, source connect, Tieline, VO, voice acting, voice actor, voice artist, voice over, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover talent, VOIP

iRig Mic Comparison, Take-2

March 18, 2011 By CourVO 5 Comments

Because I promised, and because I’m genuinely interested in seeing something like this work, I’m posting today, another comparison of soundfiles using the iRig Mic and two software apps: Twisted Wave and VocaLive. (See previous comparison blog)

The difference this time: I’m plugging the iRig Mic into my iPad (previous comparison: iPhone4) , and I’m engaging the VocaLive noise filter feature as recommended by the folks at IKMultimedia, who developed the iRig.

I see a HUGE amount of growing interest in this area, and it’s a natural progression of the VO business into even more portable (and complicated) technology solutions to our ever-on-the-go marketplace, and the increased sensitivity to our clients’ deadlines.

In this comparison, I see the VocaLive noise filter improving the quality distance over the Twisted Wave sample…which surprises me. I find the Twisted Wave app to be a little more full-featured with fewer frills.

So you know, I did NOT apply any Twisted Wave (TW) effects to this recording. ‘Maybe a little unfair, as I DID use the noise filter with VocaLive. Both programs allow you to email the resultant sound file. TW lets you send a .wav file, which I did, then converted to .mp3 on Adobe Audition 3.0. (in TW, you can also send in .aiff .caf & .aac). The VocaLive sends only in .m4a format, which I again converted to .mp3 using AVS audio converter. I applied no effects in AA3.0 to either sound files, but I did have to amplify the wave form of the TW .mp3 to match the output of the VocaLive file.

My perfect comparison would take this a step further to try other apps (Amplitube, BlueFIRe, Poddio), and even more tweaking of the apps’ native sound processing features to boost the quality of these recordings.

Until I find that perfect combination, I’d have to say I would NOT be comfortable in sending this level of quality recording to a prospective client. I still believe the AT2020 with Twisted Wave on the iPad is the best combo I’ve seen so far.

CourVO

Here are the sound samples:

CourVO sample of iRig Mic with iPad, and Twisted Wave App by CourVO

CourVO sample of iRig Mic with iPad, and VocaLive app by CourVO

Filed Under: Equipment, iPad, Mics, Technical, Technology Tagged With: Amplitube, audio recording, Blue FIRe, IKMultimedia, iPad, iRig Mic, mobile audio recording, poddio, portable audio recording, Twisted Wave App, VO, VocaLive App, voice actor, voice artist, voice over, voice talent, voiceover

New Audio TX Add-on

March 13, 2010 By CourVO Leave a Comment

Audio TX is a software alternative to the traditional ISDN box.

With Audio TX, your computer does most of the heavy-lifting that the Telos or Musicam apparatus circuitry would normally do.

Here’s the difference: It costs significantly less for no noticeable loss in signal quality, but (in my experience anyway) it requires a bit more patience and technical savvy to configure, and there’s some peripherals involved.

Now, the British firm that makes AudioTX is adding new functionality for encompassing some additional ISDN codecs. “APTx”

I’ve been using AudioTX reliably for more than a year, and as such, was on their mailing list for the pitch they sent out to users for upgrade to the new add-on.

Below, you’ll see the text of the e-mail. Personally, I think it’s a bit pricey….almost half the cost of the original TX package.

Half-again as much functionality? Doubtful.

CourVO
[Read more...]

Filed Under: Software, Technical

The Whole Pie

March 2, 2010 By CourVO Leave a Comment

Anybody know who first coined that term: “PIEHOLE”? (usually associated with the phrase “Shut your PieHole!”)

Regardless….in this case, PieHole is asking you to open yours….uh, your piehole, that is.

OK, wait-a-minute. PIEHOLE is the name of a company based in Ireland, that among other things, seeks to match voice talent with clients.

Here’s the unique link, though: PieHole makes the connection through copywriters…not that uncommon in Europe, I understand.

It’s an idea that’s working. Here’s the operative quote: “…we stalk and harass advertising agencies to hire our voiceovers…”

PieHole is a fixture in the European ad market…expanding now into the UK and Canada, and – yes – they are seeking North American talent.

I was so intrigued, that I asked the founders – Priscilla Groves and James Kennedy – to offer a few quick answers to some pointed questions.

The result is below. Click on the pic above to go to their site.

CourVO

All a-Buzz

February 11, 2010 By CourVO 1 Comment

Google continues to amaze. After the many years experiencing Microsoft’s marketplace moves, I keep thinking there’s a catch…a string attached. Google is no Boy Scout, but it’s hard to argue with the value of all the free stuff they throw at you.

Lately, I find myself using the Google Chrome browser more and more for it’s speed, now I’m using it for the growing list of extensions, too. So many of them, it’s starting to challenge the convenience of plug-ins offered by Mozilla.

For instance, there are 39 extensions alone association with Google Docs…every tweak imaginable.

There’s social networking extensions galore, an Arabic word-of-the-day extension, a “turn-off-the-lights” extension, SEO tools…OMG…anything. Installation is so easy Harry Reid could do it, and it’s fast fast fast.

Extensions install on the toolbar of your Chrome browser, and make linking to things oh so much easier.

Click HERE to go to the Google extensions page, and click away!

But wait!…there’s more!

Google is apparently feeling the pinch of Twitter’s success, and has this week launched it’s answer: BUZZ.

If you use Gmail, Google makes it ridiculously easy to launch into Buzz. See the new line they’ve inserted under the “inbox” line on the left of your Gmail screen.

When you click the Buzz link, you’ll find that Google has already chosen some followers for you, and that means some others are already following you too. The interface looks familiar to Twitter, and there are seamless links for following threads, answering, choosing new/more followers, and inviting others. In short, it’s Goog-Twit, or said another way: everything that Google Wave wanted to be, but fell short, somehow…mostly through a bad launch and an overly-complex interface.

If you DON’T see Buzz in Gmail, go HERE to install it.

I’m just not sure I need to get hooked on yet ANOTHER stream-of-consciousness, follow/follower internet social network.

CourVO

Filed Under: Technical, Technology, Twitter Tagged With: Buzz, Google, Google Buzz, voice, voice actor, voice artist, voice overs, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover talent

Audition by iPhone

February 9, 2010 By CourVO 7 Comments

This is an intriguing concept, absolutely do-able (in theory), and probably will be common in the future.

I’m sure something similar could be done by Android, BlackBerry, or other smartphone, but follow the bouncing ball, while I explain how it could be done on the iPhone.

First, you need a microphone. Amazon now sports a number of mics that plug into either the charging port on the bottom of the phone or the earphone plug on the top of the phone.

The Blue Mikey is a particularly nice addition from Blue Microphones. They’ve actually come out with a new model that has stereo recording capabilities, 230-degree rotating design, and a USB pass-through, not to mention it’s own carrying pouch and headphones. It vericorder has the same hi-fidelity 3-gain selection switch features of the original Mikey.

See also the Vericorder mini-mic, (left) a nice companion to the software I’m about to describe below by Vericorder.

Now, you need decent software….or not. You could probably stop right here and turn in a pretty decent soundfile to that client waiting impatiently to hear your dulcet tones on their new project.

But I know you better than that. You need something more than what is available for 99-cents in the appstore. You need Poddio.

Poddio used to be inexpensive. Not any more. But, if you’re serious about this, you’ll need to get Poddio. It’s an unbelievably feature-rich audio editor in the palm of your hand.

Virtually anything you can do with Sony SoundForge, you can do in Poddio (almost).

Visit VeriCorder yourself and see the specs…I’ll not bore you here, but this is one slick software app.

Since it’s inception late last year, Poddio seems to have gone through some developmental growing pains…it certainly jumped its price about 400%…and you can’t get it by just doing a search under Applications on your iPhone. You have to visit Apptism, or the Vericorder site itself.

Poddio even lets you upload/share your finished audition to a server through WiFi or 3G so your client can download and hear it.

Again, pricey….but hey, you want your audition to sound good, right?

Why would anyone want to audition by iPhone? Any number of scenarios come to mind. Maybe you’ve just left your studio for the day to go with your family to the museum, and while you’re there, your favorite client emails and dangles in front of you, THE spot you’ve been hoping to get. You grab your iphone, your Mikey, and head for the nearest mainenance closet you can find… read the script off your iPhone screen, while you voice it into the mic, then send, and wait for the email from your client that it’s just what he wanted to hear…. oh, and BTW, thanks for the excellent qualiity audition!!!

Honestly, this only miniaturizes the mobile equipment you probably take with you when you travel anyway. I wouldn’t think of cutting the final product on the iPhone (not yet), but this absolute minimum configuration is convincing enough to fit the bill in a pinch.

CourVO

Filed Under: Mics, New Paradigms, Technical, Technology Tagged With: Apptism, audition, Blue Microphones, Blue Mikey, poddio, smartphone, Vericorder, Vericorder minimic, voice actor, voice artist, voice overs, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover talent

Tech Meanderings

January 27, 2010 By CourVO Leave a Comment

Some of this stuff is just too good to keep to myself.

You may not agree, or even have interest, but a number of people tell me they appreciate hearing about the coolest tools I find on the web, so here are the latest three.

Google Voice on the iPhone.

The folks at Apple didn’t take too kindly to Google infringing on their turf, so they shut out the Google Voice App.

Google found a work-around if you don’t mind using your web-browser for this one AND you already have a Google Voice account.

See Google Voice Blog for more.

Wow, how much did Social.com spend to get THAT domain name? Whew! The site used to be called Big Tweet, and their browser toolbar bookmarklet was the easiest way to post something to Twitter. Well, you still can, it’s just called Social.com, now. Also from their website: Social.com is a suite of social media contribution tools designed to help you spread your message to all your followers on the Internet. With Social.com’s browser bookmarklet you can quickly and easily send the page that you are on – even from Google Reader – to Twitter, Delicious, and Ping.fm. Use the Social.com WordPress Plugin and Button to drive more traffic to your blog or website.

Finally, try Pixability.com for a snazzy idea making the production of videos mindless, that is if you, uh..er…don’t have a mind for that.

Here’s how it works. You get a camcorder in the mail, shoot your footage,send the camcorder back, and receive your professionally edited video.

Like I said, this is for people who REALLY don’t want to mess with the details of producing a video, don’t have time to, or have a lot of videos to produce very quickly.

How will this help your VO business? Ah, that’s up to you! I’ll probably never use Pixability, but I already use Google Voice, and Social.com…great, easy, free tools for keeping your marketing options open in cyberspace.

CourVO